


saloon swindle

by cryptidzero



Category: Dead by Daylight (Video Game)
Genre: i wanted to explore the dynamic of cowboy meeting local gambler and scammer, there was little editing done so apologies for errors n such
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-14
Updated: 2020-06-14
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:42:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 957
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24723991
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cryptidzero/pseuds/cryptidzero
Summary: how do you distract a western cowboy while trying to raid his realm's saloon? easy: gamble
Comments: 8
Kudos: 43





	saloon swindle

**Author's Note:**

> this isnt meant to be a ship or anything just me exploring how ace would prob. cheat his way into robbing the deathslinger of his bloodpoints as others raided the bar / storage area

The Entity established early on that it doesn’t just feed off of fear or despair. It feeds off of most emotions, but some sate it more than others. Positive emotions like joy, love, and excitement only feed it so much if it’s paired with a negative emotion before. Rage and despair feed it the most, leaving it sated for a bit more time compared to others. 

Rage comes in many forms. Gambling can bring out one of those forms. Now, exactly when the Entity brought in the gambler, it wasn’t expecting the man to be able to even out luck _its_ own power. Rarely it did so, but it usually saved him in the long run of the trial and against whatever monstrous killer it faced against him. 

One of the newest ones, Caleb Quinn, was one that seemed to be more relaxed when chasing down Ace. The other and older killers knew that chasing Ace around could be a major pain in the ass, especially when he’d use other tricks he picked up from his companions or his own scamming ways. Always some form of smugness in his never-fading smile, when he would stun or slip out of sight and end up making them frustrated.

Caleb may not have been smart by current society standards, but he knew how to hit a skittish target. But at the same time, he didn’t know how to hit a skittish target with some strange amount of luck on his shoulders. Usually, his chases against the gambler would end with Ace sprinting off, holding the bleeding wound on his shoulder as Caleb reloaded and would move on to a different target. 

Sometimes the Entity would allow killers and survivors to interact- if they _behaved_ . While it enjoyed the chaotic horrifying trials, it liked to have order and control _more_. It made breaking the order into bloodthirsty violence so much more sating. Like right now. 

Currently, seated at one of the old and termite-destroyed tables in the old saloon of Glendale, Ace gave a snarky grin and hid his cards from Caleb, who grew more frustrated and irritated at the loss of money on his side. 

“We can always call it quits here, eh?” Ace said, taking one of the old gold coins and twirling it between his fingers. His shades concealed his eyes, and Caleb despised the newer generations of style for making him have to look at an _awful_ pink shirt and an equally awful hat. He observed the cards face up on the table, exhaling sharply in annoyance at the shit cards shown. 

“I ain’t no quitter, Visconti.”  
  
“I mean, considering your very _visible_ telling, you might want to.” 

The bickering between the two overlapped the quiet sounds of clinking glass, Steve and Feng Min by the bar, and piling glass bottles of old liquor and gear parts into empty toolboxes and medkits. 

“Do you think he even _hears_ us?” Steve whispered, moving each bottle slowly to avoid the least amount of damage if they needed to sprint out. Feng shrugged her shoulders, hands full of gear parts that she or someone else back at the campfire could potentially fix into generator-friendly parts. 

“I think he’s, like, busy trying not to get salty.” 

“Well, I think he failed at that. Should we go?” 

Pondering for a second, Feng shoved the rest of the gears into the empty medkit and clasped it shut, nodding to the door near the back. 

“Let’s just chill outside. If we hear screaming and gunfire we can probably save him.”  
  
And after making sure the toolbox wouldn’t break from the number of liquor bottles shoved into it, they made their way to the outside, sitting on the wooden steps and waiting. 

As that conversation went down, Caleb felt pure raw anger as Ace slid the last of his money towards his pile. His grin was borderline stretching across his face, the wrinkles of age and consistent sun visible in the dim candle light as he started to carry the bags. 

“Well, Mr. Quinn, it was a _lovely_ poker session, but I believe I have won the pot, heh.” 

Sneering in anger, he was about to just hunch over and accept defeat and pray that he’d leave soon, but the slightest hint of something white under Ace’s shirt sleeve caught his eye.  
  
“Now ‘old on a minute, was that under your sleeve?” 

Ace leaned back from the outreached hand going towards his sleeve cuff, holding the bags close to his chest like they were pearls. Squinting his eyes, Caleb reached back for his gun, seething with rage as the idea of Ace cheating became more clear. 

“Y’wouldn’t have been _cheatin’_ , would ya?” 

“No! No, no, you’ve got- it _wrong_ -” 

Narrowly dodging the harpoon shot at him, Ace sprinted out the saloon, dropping a few coins behind him as the sound of the chain being reeled in from the wood splintered and echoed across the empty town. 

“Y’know what cheaters get, Visconti!” 

“Ace,” Feng hissed, running next to him as she gripped the medkit to her chest, “what did you _do_ ?”  
  


“Distract! Like I do best!” Ace hollered, grin only widening as they ran past the barrier separating the small pocket world from the vast forest, Steve stiffly holding the crate of liquor like it was a hen that couldn’t be dropped.

“Ace, you just _had_ to piss off-” a harpoon whizzed by their heads, narrowly hitting Steve in the face as it was reeled back, “the one killer with a _harpoon gun?!_ ”  
  
“It’ll be fine! I’ll just take the aggression next time we run into him!” 

And, to the Entity’s pleasure, next trial, Ace _did_ meet the end of the harpoon gun. With his jaw.

  
  
  
  



End file.
